Reports: Kevin Love Trade to Cavs a Done Deal

The deal cannot be finalized until Aug. 23, because Wiggins, the No. 1 overall pick, cannot be traded until one month following the signing of his rookie contract.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, the Cleveland Cavaliers have an agreement in place to acquire Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Photo Courtesy: NBA.com/Minnesota Timberwolves

(CLEVELAND) - The most talked about offseason trade yet to take place is apparently all but a done deal now.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, the Cleveland Cavaliers have an agreement in place to acquire Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Earlier this week, ESPN.com’s Brian Windhorst said on an interview with ESPN Radio in New York that the Love-to-Cleveland deal was also more or less done.

Here’s Wojnarowski on the details of the proposed trade:

The Minnesota Timberwolves have reached an agreement in principle to send All-Star forward Kevin Love to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and a protected 2015 first-round draft pick, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

Cleveland is making the deal with Minnesota with a firm agreement Love will opt out of his contract in 2015 and re-sign with the Cavaliers on a five-year, $120 million-plus contract extension, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The deal cannot be finalized until Aug. 23, because Wiggins, the No. 1 overall pick, cannot be traded until one month following the signing of his rookie contract. The two teams have agreed to the deal, but neither would have recourse if the other decided to pull out of the arrangement before it can be formally completed this month. No third team is involved in the Cavaliers-Timberwolves trade agreement.

The precise deal terms have been agreed upon for weeks, but the teams and Love plan to stay silent about the particulars until the trade is announced in 16 days, sources told Yahoo Sports.

Part of the Cavaliers’ motivation in making the deal for Love was a belief Love would have ended up with the rival Chicago Bulls in a trade and created a significant obstacle in the Eastern Conference, sources said. Cleveland wouldn’t have had the salary-cap space to sign Love next summer and could have only obtained him through the trade with Minnesota in a deal now.

Wiggins, the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NBA draft, is the centerpiece of the package for Minnesota. The Timberwolves see superstar potential in the forward out of Kansas. Bennett, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 draft, has shown signs of progress after a difficult start to his rookie season.

Aside from landing Love, the Cavs get what they were looking for in adding him to the roster: a long-term commitment to stay in Cleveland.

Earlier this week, the Cavs officially signed Mike Miller and James Jones, both of whom were former teammates of James’ in Miami. The Cavs are also said to be interested in adding Ray Allen — another former Heat teammate of James’ — to the mix.

Wojnarowski reported last night that free agent forward Shawn Marion is also favoring the Cavs as his next team.

Source: NBA.com